Scottish history events

Prehistory
6000 BC
Evidence of settlements in Tenstmuir, Fife

3,000 BC
Neolithic Settlements, including Beaker People and Skara Brae on Orkney

1000 BC - 100 BC
Picts reach Scotland, probably from mainland Europe ?

1st C BC
More than 400 Brochs (thick-walled circular towers) built in far north

Pre-Roman times
Picts living in Pictavia (north of the Clyde and Forth.
Later, Scots (originally Scotii from Ireland) lived in Dalriada (north of Strathclyde)
Britons lived in Strathclyde
Angles living in Goddodin and Bernicia (present day Lothian & Borders, south to Hadrian's Wall)
Together, they were called the Caledonii by the Romans.

80 AD
Julius Agricola crossed the River Clyde fighting off  Celts

84 
Celtic tribes unite under Calgacus, who is killed (along with 10,000 men) fighting Agricola at Ardoch (battle of Mons Graupius). The Romans lost 340 men.

122-128
Emperor Hadrian starts building Hadrian's Wall to defend the Romans from the Scots & Picts. It is 117 Km long, from Bowness to Wallsend ( between the Tyne and Solway Firth.
The wall was intended to hold back the Caledonians...but didn't

139 - 142
Antonine's Wall built (known as Graham's Dyke).

c. 185
Antonine Wall abandoned. Defeat of Romans in Caledonia - they retreat behind Hadrian's Wall - and the beginning of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire

296
Picts first mentioned in Roman literature. The name "Pict" is said to come from a Latin word meaning "painted people" because they tattooed their bodies with patterns in coloured vegetable dyes.

360 
Roman literature described the warring tribe based in Ireland as the "Scots" 
Birth of St. Ninian - first known Christian missionary in Scotland. He lived on the shores of the Solway Firth. 

368 
Picts and Scots invade northern England.
Pict, Scot and Saxon tribes attack the Romans in London and plunder their treasures. 

397
St.Ninian, the first missionary whose name is known, arrives in Whithorn in Galloway,  although there were probably already Christian settlements. Died 432.

369
Roman General Theodosius drives the Picts and Scots out of Roman Britain.

410
Birth of St. Patrick (Patron Saint of Ireland). Said to have been born near Kirkpatrick on the River Clyde. He went to Ireland 0432. Died 0461.

412 Romans leave the British Isles.

503 
Gaelic-Speaking Christian Scots, led by Fergus McErc, leave Ireland and build their kingdom of Dalriada in Argyll on the West coast & Isles of Scotland with their capital at Dunadd.

518
Birth of St. Kentigern (St. Mungo)  at Culross, Fife, where his mother, St Thenog (St Enoch) was given sanctuary - Apostle of Cumbria and founder of Glasgow, he reportedly died 613.

c. 550
Anglian (Angles) settlement in south-east Scotland.

563 
Columba (0521-597), an Irish missionary, founds a monastery on the Island of Iona to convert the Picts to Christianity. Later sanctified.

600 
Battle of Catterick - 300 Edinburgh horsemen killed by the English.

606
King Aidan of Dalriada dies.

617
Edwin becomes king of Northumbria (to 633)  and founds Edinburgh

663
Synod of Whitby - Roman Christianity wins out over Celtic Church.

685 
Battle of Nechtansmere (at Drunnichen, Forfarshire) - The King of the Picts Bridei III defeats Egric of Northumbria and  the Picts led by Nechtan. Nechtan had rejected the Celtic Church in favour of the Roman church. This established Scotland's southern border.

710
Roman Christianity established in Pictland.

724
Nechtan becomes first Pictish King to fully embrace Christianity

802
Vikings (Danes) plunder Iona

843 
Kenneth MacAlpin (son of Alpin) King of Scots, claims the throne of Pictavia. His grandmother had been a Pictish princess. He unites the Scots and Picts as one nation known as Scotia or Alba. This was the first step in creating a united Scotland. Although never crowned, he was known as Kenneth I and reigned until 860.

860
Kenneth's brother Donald becomes Donald I (reigned 0890-0863).

863
Kenneth's son Constantine becomes Constantine I (reigned ca 863-877).

872
Constantine assassinates 'Run' King of Strathclyde and his brother-in-law. The southern regions of what is now Scotland, becomes part of Scotia/Alba 

877
Kenneth's second son, Aed (Aodh) becomes king (reigned 877-878). He is killed at Dundurn, Perthshire, by his cousin, Giric (the son of Donald I, also known as Gregory the Great) 

878
Eochaid (Eocha) - the son of the Ku, King of Strathclyde (son of Alpin's daughter) - becomes king. Reigned 878-889.

889
Constantine's son Donald becomes Donald II (reigned 889-900). He spens much of his reign fending off the Danish in the north led by Sigurd the Mighty and the Danish in the south led by Guthrum. He died near Forres (suspected poisoning). 

900
Constantine II,  eldest son of Aed (Aodh), reigns 900-943).

937 
Battle of Brananburgh - The Saxon King Athelstane defeats the Danes, Celts and Britons (Scots) near Solway. He takes the title of King of all Britain.

943
Constantine II abdicates after watching his armies defeated and his kingdom getting smaller, . He spent the rest of this life in a monastery.

Constantine's second cousin, Malcolm (son of Donald II) becomes Malcolm I (reigned 943-954). After his return from a crusade in 0954, Malcolm's own northerly regions revolted. They kill him at Fordoun in the Mearns in 954.

945
Indulf, the son of Constantine II, becomes king (reigned 954-962). He captures the fortress at Dun Eden (Edinburgh), defeating Edwin the Anglian. The Scots annex Cumberland and Westmorland from the English.

962
Dubh (Duff), son of Malcolm I, becomes king (reigned 962-967). He is killed by Culen (Colin), Indulf's son, at Forres, Moray. 

967
Culen (Colin) becomes king (reigned 967-971). 

971
Kenneth, second son of Malcolm I, becomes Kenneth II (reigned 971-995). 

973
Kenneth II defeated the Danish Vikings.

986
Last recorded Viking raid on Iona.

995
Culen's son, Constantine, becomes Constantine III (reigned 995-997). The cause of his death at Rathinveramon is not known, suspected murder by Kenneth III. 

997
Dubh's (Duff) son, Kenneth, becomes Kenneth III (reigned 997-1005) 

1005 
Kenneth II's son, Malcolm, kills Kenneth III at Monzievaird. 
He becomes Malcolm II (reigned 1005-1034).

1005 MacBeth  born

1014
Battle of Mortlach, Banffshire - Malcolm II defeats the Danes. 

1018 
Malcolm II gains Lothian , with the help of Owen the Bald (King of fhe Strathclyde Britons), after defeating the Saxons at the Battle of Carham. Owen the  Bald is killed. He struck a bargain with the English that Lothian and South of the Clyde would be his as long as he didn't change the traditions and language of the area. Thus the border between Scotland and England was formed. He did not have any sons, so he named Duncan (the son of his eldest daughter, Bethoc) to be king. To ensure that his line remained, he slaughtered all the remaining male descendants of Kenneth III.

1020
MacBeth's father, Finlaech MacRuaridh, is slain by his nephews Gillecombain & Malcolm.

1033
MacBeth is elected Mormaer of Moray

1034 
Duncan I (MacCrinan), already ruler of Strathclyde, kills his grandfather Malcolm II at Glamis and becomes King of a largely united Scotland. He encourages families of Norman origin to move from England to Scotland. He reigned 1034-1040

1040 
MacBeth (a chief, born 1005) kills Duncan I in a battle at Bothnagowan and becomes King. It is thought that he was instrumental in the killing of his other cousin, Gillacomgain. 
MacBeth married Gillacomgain's widow who already had a son named Lulach. He reigned 1040-1057.

1057 
Malcolm Canmore (meaning 'big head') also known as Malcolm MacDuncan (Duncan I's son), kills MacBeth at the Battle of Lumphananand. Macbeth's stepson, Lulach (aka: 'the Fool'), reigns for one year before being killed by Malcolm.

1058
Malcolm becomes King Malcolm III. Reigned 1058-1093.

1066
It is often said that the first Durie in Britain was a companion of William the Conqueror called du Ry or Du Roi, but there is no evidence of this. If so, he may have come from the village of Ry 20Km East of Rouen. It is also close to Douai (site of the Scots College) in France.

Ry is a picturesque village in the Vallée du Crevon in Seine-Maritime(76) - Normandie.

1069
Malcolm III marries (Saint) Margaret, probably an arranged marriage to secure an alliance between Scotland and the Saxon claimants to the English crown. She brings Anglo-Norman and European (Hungarian)  influence to Lowland Scotland.

1072
William the Conqueror invades Scotland. Malcolm III submits to him at Abernethy and  accepts him as overlord.

1087 William the Conqueror dies. His son, William Rufus, invades Cumbria and it becomes part of England.

1093
Battle of Alnwick - Malcolm III and his wife Margaret killed by the English. Donald Bane (Malcolm's brother) reigns 1093-1094.

1094
Duncan II declares himself king by hereditary right and reigns for one year before being killed. Donald Bane returns to reign (until 1097).

1097
Edgar, born 1072, (second son of Malcolm III),  defeats Donald Bane (with the help of William II of England) and reigns 1097-1107. Edgar starts the Anglo-Norman ruling class in Scotland.

1098
Magnus Barefoot claims the Western Isles.

1119
First mention (it is often claimed) of the name "Durie".  This may be a mistake based on a coat of arms above the Archway of Rossend Castle, referring to the building date of the earliest part.

1107 
On the death of Edgar, Scotland becomes disunited. Alexander I (born 1078, Edgar's brother) becomes King of Scots. Reigned 1107-1124.
Alexander's brother, David I, becomes King in Lothian and Strathclyde.

1124 
Alexander I dies. Unity restored when David I  (Alexander's brother, born 1084) becomes King of Scots. His reign was one of the most important in Scotland's history, extending Scottish borders to the River Tees, including all of Northumberland. Reigned 1124-1153.

1134
Province of Moray forfeited to (annexed by) the Crown.

1138
Battle of Northallerton (Battle of the Standard) - David I defeated and the Normans kill 10,000 Scots. He was fighting on behalf of Matilda - a claimant to the English throne, after the death of Henry I of England.

1153
Malcolm IV 'The Maiden' (born 1141, grandson of David I) reigned 1153-1165.

1165
William 'The Lion' (born 1143, brother of Malcolm IV) reigned 1165-1214.

1174
William the Lion defeated by the English at Alnwick. The Treaty of Falaise signed, under which Scotland would be in debt to England for years.

1180
Province of Ross subdued by William the Lion. Inverness receives Charter from William.

1192 Scottish Church becomes a special 'daughter' of the Roman See.

1214
Alexander II (born 1198, son of William 'The Lion') reigned 1214-1249.

ca. 1250 The name Durie appears to be linked with the title of Dereth, the hereditary steward to the Abbot of Dunfermline. Robert, Abbot of Dunfermline, provided to "Symon, called Dereth, son of Thomas Dereth of Kynglassy".
They were granted the estate of Craigluscar (outside Dunfermline), and also the lands of Durie (in present-day Scoonie, Leven, (now owned by the Christie family) plus the lands in Burntisland where Rossend Castle was later built (see 1382)

1249
Alexander II dies at Kerrera.

Alexander III (born 1241, son of Alexander II) reigned 1249-1286.

Queen Margaret  died in Edinburgh Castle on 16th November 1093. She was buried before the Altar of the Holy Cross in the church she had founded in Dunfermline. When St Margaret, Malcolm III's queen, was canonised in 1250 her body was translated from its original burial site inside Dunfermline Abbey to the east end of the Abbey church where it could be venerated by pilgrims.

Her skull was encased in a reliquary ­ a silver and gold likeness adorned with pearls, chains and precious stones. Her hair could be viewed through a crystal on the breast of the figure. (See 1560)

Raku-fired ceramic and glass reconstruction of Queen Margaret's head  reeliquary by Walter Awlson, DA of Alva. Sponsored by British Gas (Scotland).

1263
Battle of Largs - King Haaken of Norway and his fleet beaten by the Scots. The Hebrides claimed from Norway.

1274
William Wallace born in Ellerslie.

1286
Alexander III dies after a fall from his horse over a cliff. Margaret 'Maid of Norway' (born 1283, grand daughter of Alexander III, married to Erik II of Norway) reigned from 1286 to 1290 but died at sea on her way to Scotland to claim the throne. On the death of Margaret, there was no obvious heir.

1290
Edward I of England asked to decide who should rule. Robert Bruce was a claimant. Edward chose John Balliol (born 1249, great grandson of David, Earl of Huntingdon - who was brother of William I 'The Lion'). John Balliol reigned 1292-1296.

1295 
Signing of the "Auld Alliance" between Scotland and France - one of the world's oldest mutual defense treaties. 

1296 
Battle of Dunbar - Balliol defies Edward I of England. Edward invades Scotland and defeats the Scots with 30,000 men and 5,000 cavalry. Annexation of Scotland by England. Scotland's "Stone of Destiny" or  "Stone of Scone" - removed to Westminster Abbey (in London) by  Edward I and used as the Coronation Stone.  (The stone was temporarily returned to Scotland in 1950 and permanently returned in 1996.)

1297
William Wallace kills the Sheriff of Lanark, Hazelrig. He defeats the English army of Edward I at Stirling Bridge and becomes the "Guardian of Scotland".

1298
Battle of Falkirk - William Wallace and his army defeated by the army of Edward I of England. Robert Bruce knights him at Selkirk Abbey.

1305
English capture and execute William Wallace. He is hanged, drawn and quartered

1306
Robert Bruce (1274-1329) a decendant of David I, murders John 'Red' Comyn at Greyfriar Abbey, Dumfries. Bruce'  leads a rebellion against English rule and is crowned Robert I at Scone. Reigned 1306-1329.

1307
Robert Bruce's three brothers (Alexander, Nigel & Thomas) executed by Edward I. Robert  defeats the Earl of Pembroke at Louden Hill - his first major victory over the English.

1308
Battle of Inverurie - King Robert the Bruce defeats Comyn of Buchan and the English.

1314 
Battle of Bannockburn - Robert the Bruce (with only 500 mounted men, 2,500 spearmen and 5,000 warriors, but possibly with the help of the Knights Templar) routs the English king Edward II and an army of 22,000. 

1315
John Balliol dies.

1320 
The Declaration of Arbroath drawn up to urge the Pope to recognise Scottish independence from England. The Pope accepted the Declaration.

1326
The first Scottish Parliament meets.

1328
Treaty of Northhampton signed between Edward III and Robert I. Scotland finally becomes independent from England and Robert Bruce officially recognised as  King.

1329
Robert the Bruce dies at Cardross, possibly of leprosy. 
His son, David (born 1324) becomes David II. He reigned 1329-1371.

1332
Battle of Dupplin - Scots (under Earl of Mar) were defeated by Edward Balliol (son of John Balliol). Balliol has the blessing of Edward III of England and is crowned at Scone.

1333
Battle of Halidon - Edward III of England defeats the Scots (under Archibald Douglas). 

1334
David II exiled to France for seven years. Balliol pays homage to Edward III and gives up title to most of South Scotland.

1338
Battle of Otterburn - Henry Percy and the English defeat the Scots under Douglas.

1346
David II returns from France and Philip VI of France appeals for a counter invasion of England. Battle of Nevilles Cross - David II defeated and captured by the English.

1349
The "Black Death" (Bubonic Plague) begins in Scotland.

1371
Robert II 'The Steward' (born 1316, son of Marjory - daughter of Robert I 'The Bruce') reigned 1371-1390. he is the first Stewart or Stuart king. 

1382 Rossend Castle (Burntisland) built by the Laird of Durie. 

Burntisland Castle has an armorial tablet bearing the Durie arms and the date 1554. It is now an architect's offices and can be visited. The castle and most of the extensive Durie properties were confiscated at the reformation.

1388
Battle of Otterburn - The English, led by Harry "Hotspur" and Ralph Percy (sons of the Earl of  Northumberland), defeated by the Scots, led by Sir James Douglas (2nd Earl of Douglas). James Douglas is killed,  Harry and Ralph Percy captured.

1390
John, son of Robert, (born 1340) changes his name (due to bad omen associated with the name) to  Robert III. He was physically disabled. Reigned 1390-1406.

1402
Battle of Homildon Hill, Northunberland, England - the Scots are defeated

1406
James I (born 1394, son of Robert III) reigned from 1406 to 1437. He is captured at sea during  a truce and imprisonred in England.  Robert, Duke of Albany reigned as regent (1406-1420).

1411 
Battle of Harlaw - Donald, Lord of the Isles, defeated by an army of Lowlanders.

University of St. Andrews founded (influenced by the French culture, the curriculum was  Paris-based).

1419
Henry V of England imposes rigid legal regulations over the use of Coat of Arms, due to the increase in the number of court cases relating to Heraldic disputes.

1420
Murdock, Duke of Albany reigned as regent (1420-1424) 

1424
James I allowed to return to Scotland from captivity in England.

1427
Parliament at Inverness - James I orders the imprisonment of fifty Highland Chiefs.

1429
Battle of Druimnacoub - Inverness attacked and burned by Alexander, Lord of the Isles.

1437
James I murdered by the great nobles at Perth. His son, (born 1430) becomes James II and reigned 1437 - 1460.

1451 
University of Glasgow founded 

1460 
James II killed by an exploding canon during the siege of Roxburgh (against the English).  His son James III (born 1451) reigned 1460-1488.

1468
James III marries Margaret of Denmark.

1472
St. Andrews raised to Archiepiscopal Status.

1488 
James III murdered by his son (James) during the Battle of Sauchieburn, after being accused of surrounding himself with evil advisers who encouraged him to bring Englishmen into Scottish affairs. James IV (born 1472) reigned 1488-1513.

1494 
University of Aberdeen founded by historian Hector Boece (Boyce) of Panbridge.

1502 
King Henry VII of England marries his daughter, Margaret Tudor,  to James IV of Scotland. This ultimately gives rise to the Union of the Crowns (1603). 

1512 
Under the terms of a treaty with France (the "Auld Alliance") all Scottish citizens become French citizens and vice versa. 

1519 Andrew Durie was vicar of Newtyle. (Probably later Bishop of Galloway, see below)

The Duries had been granted the estate of Craigluscar, near Leven, where a house, built in 1520, has a stone shield bearing the Durie arms and the initials of a George Durie and his wife, Margaret Bruce. Craigluscar remained in the family until the 1900s.

1513
Henry VIII of England rejects James IV's envoy. Battle of Flodden (Branxton) - King James IV defeated and killed, along with much of the Scottish aristocracy by the English (led by the 75 year old Earl of Surrey). 

James V (born 1512, son of James IV) begins his 29 year reign 1513-1542. Because of his age, Scotland was ruled by a regent. 

1528
James V's personal reign begins

1527 Andrew Durie becomes Abbot of Melrose

1537 John Durie, a cousin of Abbot George Durie, is born at Mauchline, Ayrshire. He married Marion Marjoribanks, daughter of Edinburgh's Lord Provost.

Rossend Castle, Burntisland, was built in 1382 and has an armorial tablet bearing the Durie arms and the date 1554. It is now an architect's offices and can be visited. The castle and most of the extensive Durie properties were confiscated at the reformation and the estates were sold around 1614 to Sir Alexander Gibson who, when he became a judge in 1621, took the judicial title Lord Durie.

1542
Battle of Solway Moss - James V is killed. Mary ' Queen of Scots' (the one week old daughter of James V) reigned 1542-1567 with her French mother (Mary of Guise) as her regent. Mary is sent to France for safety.

1544
The "Rough Wooing" - England, pushing territorial ambitions through a proposed marriage and alliance, was sharply rebuffed, and thus resorted to the policy known as "rough wooing" and aggression towards Scotland. The Scot/English border wars and conflicts reached their height .

1557
The first Covenant (Secret Scottish Protestant group).

1558
Mary 'Queen of Scots' marries Francis, the Dauphin and heir to the French throne.

1559
John Knox's sermon in Perth - regarded as the start of the Reformation in Scotland.

1560 One George Durie was Chaplain at Inverkeithing and later (1574) Reader.

The turmoil of the reformation disrupted several Duries lives

Margaret McBeth, wife of Henry Durie of Craigluscar, was renowned for her skill with herbs and was a favourite of Anne of Denmark attending the births of the royal children born at the Palace of Dunfermline. It is said she saved the life of Charles I when other physicians had failed.

1560
Treaty of Berwick  between Elizabeth I of England and the Scottish reformers. 

The Church of Scotland founded.

Treaty of Edinburgh - between England, Scotland and France.

1561
Mary returns to Scotland from France.

1563
Mary's Witchcraft Act passed in Scotland, condemning "witches" to be burned as heretics.

1565
Mary marries her cousin Lord Darnley

1567
Lord Darnley murdered, possibly by Earl of Bothwell, who married Mary.

Mary forced to abdicate in favour of her son James (born 1566). 

James VI of Scotland reigned 1567-1603. ( He reigned as James I of Britain 1603-1625.)

1568
Battle of Langside - Moray and 45,000 men defeat Mary with only 4,500 men.  Mary escapes to England to seek help from her cousin Elizabeth I of England. Elizabeth imprisons her.

1570
The Regent Moray is murdered by nobles.

1572
John Knox dies.

1582 
University of Edinburgh founded. 

1590 John Durie Received of a pension of 140/- from the King. John, with Archie Stewart, was the last man to see John Knox alive (17 November; he died on 24 November).

1592 Robert Durie was a minister in Anstruther. He explored the possibility of colonising Lewis with The Fife Adventurers. He attended a banned Assembly of the Church and was exiled to Holland. Died 1616. Eight sons, including John, a Lutheran reformer and Protestant divine.

1587
Mary beheaded at Fotheringhay for treason.

1600 
Scotland adopts the Gregorian Calendar. 

Joshua Durie is known to have been at Montrose in 1596, Forfar in 1596, St Andrews in 1606, Inverkeillar in 1613, and was Ambassador to England for James VI. Joshua died in 1631. His sons were John, Nicholas and others.

1603 
Elizabeth I of England dies. 

James VI of Scotland becomes James I of England (the first Stuart King of England) bringing about the Union of the Crowns. 

1617 
James (on his only return to Scotland) tactlessly lectures his countrymen on the "superiority of English civilisation". 

1614 The Durie estates in Durie, Scoonie, Leven, Fife were sold around 1614 by Henry Kemp-Durie to Sir Alexander Gibson whotook the judicial title Lord Durie, when he became a judge in 1621. Gibson had no family relationship to Durie.

See Gibson, Lord Durie

1624  24  May (the day before the Great Fire of Dunfermline)  George Durie of Craigluscar is made a Burgess (freeman) of Dunfermline - "lykwys entered burges and frieman of ye said bruth gratis, and maid ye nytbrs aith" (the burgess oath). 

1618 
James imposes Bishops on the Presbyterian Church of Scotland in an attempt to integrate it with the Church of England. This move is deeply unpopular with the Scots. 

1625 
James VI, King of Great Britain died and his son Charles (born 1600) becomes Charles I. 
Although born in Scotland, Charles has no interest in the country and deals with Scottish affairs with even less tact than his father, causing discontent. Reigned 1625-1649.

1633
Charles I of England crowned King of Scotland in Edinburgh.

1637 
Charles attempts to further anglicise the Church of Scotland by introducing a new prayer book, which caused riots at St. Giles in Edinburgh.

1638 During the months of March and April  the National Covenant was subscribed this year at
Dunfermline by "the nobility, gentlemen, burgesses and community", among them James Durie of Craigluscar

John Durie (Dury), grandson of the earlier John Durie, becomes a persistent advocate of Protestant union. Born in Edinburgh 1596, he died at Cassel Sept. 26, 1689. His father left Scotland because of his opposition to the policy of King James VI, and Durie, having completed his studies in Oxford, accepted the position of minister of the English settlers at Elbing just after Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden captured the city. There he became acquainted with Swedish Lutherans and in 1628 began a careful study of the differences between the Lutherans and the Reformed with a view to a reconciliation. The English ambassador, Sir Thomas Roe,  became interested in Durie's plan and in 1630 sent Durie to England with an endorsement of his project to the moderates among the bishops. It seemed a favorable moment to send Durie to the Continent in the interest of ecclesiastical peace, and he thus began an activity of almost fifty years an an itinerant advocate of union between the Reformed and the Lutherans. Until the end of 1633 he traveled through Germany with letters of recommendation from Roe, as well as the Archbishop Abbot of Canterbury and other bishops and theologians. Gustavus Adolphus received him at Wiirzburg and promised him a letter of recommendation to the Protestant princes of Germany. In 1633 Durie was recalled to England by the death of Archbishop Abbot, whose successor, Laud, supported him only after he had joined the Anglican Church and had been ordained in it. Beginning in 1634, in Germany and Holland, in 1638 he was expelled from Sweden, but in 1639 he was in Denmark, where his reception was unfriendly, and in the following year he returned to Germany, associating chiefly with the dukes Augustus and George of Brunswick. 
The troubles in England called him home. From 1641 to 1644 he was an Anglican clergyman in The Hague, but in 1645, when Laud fell, he rejoined the Presbyterians. In the eventful years 1645-49 he took part in the drafting of the Westminster Confession and the Westminster Catechism, but refused to vote in favor of the king's death. He supported Cromwell's protectorate, joined the Independents, and was again sent to the Continent by Cromwell in 1654 where he visited Reformed theologians and statesmen in Switzerland, Germany, and Holland, and returned to England in 1657. Cromwell's death in 1658 and the restoration of 1660 interrupted all his efforts. With no more hope of governmental support of his plans for union, he could continue his work only in private and at his own risk. Despite his advanced age, he left England in 1661 and returned to his task of uniting the Protestant churches and of reconciling the Reformed and the Lutherans. He gained the sympathy of the Landgrave William VI. of Hesse-Cassel and the Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg, and after the early death of the former his widow, Hedwig Sophia, who ruled almost alone at Cassel from 1663 to 1683, remained Durie's patroness throughout the remainder of his life. 
The time was not yet ripe for an idea of ouch far-reaching importance, and thus Durie's life-work ended in apparent failure. In the dedication of a work on the Apocalypse of John (written in French and published at Frankfort, 1674) to his patroness, the landgravine of Hesse, he wrote: "The chief fruit of my labors is that I see that the misery of the Christians in far greater than the wretchedness of the heathen and other nations; I see the cause of the misery; I see the lack of remedy, and I see the cause of that lack. For myself, I see that I have no other profit than the witness of my conscience." 

Among Durie's numerous works were Sententiae de pacis rationibus inter evangelicos, ( 1638; Eng. transl., 1841); A Summary Discourse concerning the Work of Peace Ecclesiatical (Cambridge, 1641), presented to Sir Thomas Roe in 1639; A Memorial concerning Peace Ecclesiastical (London, 1641), addressed "to the king of England and the pastors and elders of the Kirk of Scotland meeting at 8t. Andrews"; An Epistolary Discourse (1644). concerning the toleration of independency; A Model of Church Government (1647): The Reformer Library Keeper (1660); An Earnest Plea for Gospel Communion (1654); A Summary Platform of the Heads of a Body of Practical Divinity (1654); Irenicorum tractatuum Prodromus (Amsterdam, 1674) and most famously. The Reformed Librarie-keeper,the first ever treatise on librarianship.

John Durie is often credited with the famous slogan 'In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity' but it wasn't his. 

1638 
The National Covenant - Charles regarded protests against the prayer book as treason, forcing Scots to choose between 
their church and the King. A "Covenant", swearing to resist these changes to the death, was signed in Greyfriars Church in Edinburgh. The covenant was widely accepted by the Scots. 

1639 
Charles calls a General Assembly, effectively abolishing the unpopular Scottish Bishops. First Bishops' War with England over religion ends with Pacification of Dunse.

1640 
The Second Bishops' War - Charles' peace collapses. The Scots Covenanting Army (led by David Leslie) marches on Newcastle and defeats the English army. Charles agrees to pay Scotland 850 pounds per day, until a settlement is reached.

1641 
Having no realistic chance of opposing the Scots, Charles negotiates a truce at Ripon. 

1642 
Civil war breaks out in England. The Scottish Covenanters side with the English rebels who took power. The Earl of Montrose sides with King Charles, so civil strife also spills over into Scotland. 

1643
English Parliament signs the Solemn League and Covenant, which allies it with the Scots. The Scots provide military aid in return for 30,000 pounds.

1645
Battle of Inverlochie - James Graham, Marquis of Montrose raises the clans to fight for Charles I against Argyle. 1,500 Campbells are killed, Montrose ravages Argyll but is defeated bat the Battle of Philiphaugh

1646
Charles I gives himself up to the Scots. The Campbells massacre the Lamonts.

1647
The Scots sell Charles I to the English Parliament for 400,000 pounds. He is kidnapped by the army and escapes. He makes a secret treaty - the "Engagement" - with dissident Scottish nobles and agrees to push Scottish Presbyterianism in return for lowland Scottish support and arms.

1648
Battle of Preston - the Scots try to invade England, but are defeated by Oliver Cromwell.

1649
Charles I tried and executed. Start of the Commonwealth era (1649-1660) - the crown ceased to be.

1650
Charles Stuart (born 1630, son of Charles I) lands in Scotland and is proclaimed Charles II.
Battle of Invercharron - Marquis of Montrose lands a small army in Caithness, in an attempt to overthrow the Covenanters and the Parliamentary rule of Oliver Cromwell. Clan Mackenzie is  expected to support him, but does not.  He is routed at Carbisdale,  tries to escape but is captured by the men of Neil MacLeod (11th Chief). Montrose is hanged in the Grassmarket in Edinburgh.

1651
Charles II crowned at Scone - the last coronation in Scotland.

Battle of Worcester - Charles II invades England with a Scots army. Cromwell defeats them. Charles escaped to France.

1653
Scotland taken under the Protectorate (Cromwell).

1675 Eric Durie wrote A Treatise on Moonlight.

1675 French Huguenots, exiled in Mannheim and Utrecht, set sail for America in the Ship the Gilded Otter. Among them are Joost Durie from Mannheim and Jean (or John) Durie (born around Nov 1654 in Utrecht). Their origin is said to be near La Rochelle.

In the late 17th century George Durie was a captain in Louis XIV’s Scots Guards and also later a provost of Dunfermline (re-elected 1684, 1685).

The Braye Manuscripts, the most important collection of 17th century parliamentary records to have passed into private hands, were accumulated by John Browne, Clerk of the Parliaments, 1638-91. After Browne’s death the papers were moved to Stanford Hall, the home of the Cave family, which eventually succeeded to the Barony of Braye. The Braye Manuscripts were purchased by the House of Lords Records Office in 1987. Amongst many manuscripts of significance are details of John Durie’s mission to the Continent, on behalf of Archbishop Laud, to effect a union between the Lutherans and the Calvinists.

1660
English Parliament invites the exiled Charles II to return as King -  the Restoration of the crown.

1666
Battle of Rullion Green - Covenanters defeated by General Dalyell.

1679
Graham of Claverhouse defeated by the Covenanters.

1671
Birth of Rob Roy MacGregor - notorious Jacobite (died 1734).

1677
William of Orange marries Mary (daughter of James, Duke of York, heir to the English throne).

1689 John Durie (Dury), grandson of the earlier John Durie (see 1638),  died at Cassel Sept. 26. 

1704 Andrew Durie wrote Disputatio Mathematica de Contactus Angelo.

1682 
National Library of Scotland founded. Now one of the UK's four copyright deposit libraries. 

1685
The Earl of Argyll invades Scotland but is captured and executed at Edinburgh.

Charles II dies and his brother James (born 1633 ) becomes James VII of Scotland and II of England. Reigned 1685-1688.

1688
Seven lords invite William of Orange to save Britain from Catholicism. James VII and II flees to France. William  becomes William III and his wife Mary (Stuart) becomes Mary II (joint rulers) - called the Glorious Revolution. They state that no future rulers will be or marry Roman Catholics.

1689
Battle of Killiecrankie - General Hugh Mackay defeated by Viscount Dundee (John Graham, Bonnie Dundee, Earl of Claverhouse) and his Highland army. Viscount Dundee mortally wounded. The battle was believed to have been caused by the murder of one of the General's troopers.

1692 
The massacre of Glencoe. Clan Campbell siding with King William of Orange, murdered members of Clan MacDonald. This was because the chief of MacDonald of Glencoe arrived six days late to swear an oath of loyalty to King William. The MacDonald chief was found guilty of treason. The Campbells swore to destroy the MacDonalds. King William fell out of favour with most of the Highlanders.

1694
Reign of William III (IV)
William Paterson (a Scotsman) founded the Bank of England. 
He was also a leading advocate of the Darien Scheme, which is believed to have cost Scotland nearly half of its national wealth.

1695 
Bank of Scotland founded. 

1698
The Darien Expedition/Scheme - to compete with the English East India Trading Company, the Scots formed a similar organisation, Company of Scotland Trading to Africa and the Indies. Known in London as the Scottish East India Company, investors championed the proposal. It settled on the Isthmus of Panama (Darien) with some poor planning and when native Indians, Spaniards and disease nearly wiped them out, they called on the English fleet to rescue them. The English sent no help. Very few Scots survived.

1707 
Act of Union passed; Scotland formally united with England to form Great Britain. Although claimed to have been a peaceful and desired Union, it was met with riots in Edinburgh and the Highlanders never wanted Union with England. It was, in effect, "steamrollered" onto the Scots by Queen Anne. The Scottish Parliament was adjourned on the 25 March 1707 - for almost 300 years.

1715
First Jacobite rebellion - Jacobites fighting for James Stuart (James VIII), the Old Pretender, defeated at the Battle of Sheriffmuir.

1714
Queen Anne dies without leaving an heir. The throne has to go to a Protestant heir of James VI/I. George of Hanover, a great grandson of James I, becomes George I (born 1660, reigned 1714-1727). 

1727
George II (born 1683, son of George I) reigned 1727-1760

1739
Black Watch raised to "keep an eye" on the Scottish Highlands.

1743
The potato introduced into the Scottish Highlands.

1744 
The world's first Golf Club (the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers) was founded. 

1745 
Prince Charles Edward Stuart 'Bonnie Prince Charlie' (born 1720, grandson of James VII) 
returns to Scotland. Second Jacobite rebellion begins. Scottish victory against Johnny Cope at the Battle of Prestonpans  Jacobite Scottish army advances as far south as Derby, but then retreats.

1746 
Battle of Falkirk - Jacobites defeat the English government troops.
Battle of Culloden - The Jacobites are routed by the government troops led by Cumberland Charles escapes to France where he dies 1788.

The wearing of the kilt is prohibited. 

1759
Birth of Robert Burns - writer of "Auld Lang Syne". He died 1796.

1760
George II dies. George, the grandson of George II (born 1738) becomes George III. Reigned 1760-1820.

1768 
The first edition of the "Encyclopedia Britannica" published in Edinburgh by William Smellie 

1770 
The Clyde Trust created to convert the River Clyde, which was at that time an insignificant river, into a major maritime thoroughfare. This required major excavation and dredging.

1771
Sir Walter Scott born in Edinburgh (1771-1832). 

1776
Economist Adam Smith born in Kirkcaldy. Later publishes "The Wealth of Nations"

James Watt builds the separate condenser steam engine.

1777
Highland Light Infantry raised.

1778
Seaforth Highlanders raised.

1785
The Highland Clearance begin.

1788
Bonnie Prince Charlie dies

1793
Cameron Highlanders raised.

1794
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders raised.
Gordon Highlanders raised.

1807
Tenants removed to make way for sheep-farming in the Sutherland Clearance. Many sent to America, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

1813
David Livingstone (1815-73, African explorer) born in Blantyre. 

1820
George IV (born 1772, son of George III) reigned 1820-1830.

1826 
Scotland's first commercial railway was opened between Edinburgh and Dalkeith. 

1830
William IV (born 1765, brother of George IV) reigned 1830-1837.

1837
Victoria (born 1819, niece of William IV) reigned 1837-1901.

1843 
Disruption of the Church of Scotland. 474 ministers signed the Deed of Demission and formed the Free Church  of Scotland (the "Wee Free").

1845
Robert William (1822-1873) patented the vulcanised rubber pneumatic tyre. The invention was abandoned because of the costs. It was re-invented by a Scottish veterinary surgeon, John Boyd Dunlop (1840-1892) in 1888.

1849
Robert William patented the fountain pen.

1850
Novelist Robert Louis Stevenson born Edinurgh (1850-94).

1854
Official ending of the Highland Clearance.

1859
The National Gallery of Scotland opens. 

1860 
Scotland hosts the first Open Golf Championship. 

1870 
The first Rugby International played between Scotland and England.

1872 
The Scottish Football Association and Rangers Football Club founded.

1873
Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell explains the laws of electromagnetism.

1876
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) invents the telephone in USA.

1879 
Tay Bridge  collapses in storm taking train with it. Corners  had been cut during construction to reduce costs). The bridge was designed by William Arrol (1839-1913).

1882
Robert Louis Stevenson publishes 'Treasure Island'.

1883
William Smith forms the Boys' Brigade in Glasgow.

1888 
Celtic Football Club founded. 

1890 
Forth Rail Bridge opens. Designed by William Arrol (who also designed the Tay Bridge, which collapsed)  it took six years to build.

1892
Sir James Dewar invents the Thermos flask.

1896 
The Underground Railway (the "shooglie") in Glasgow was opened. It remains the only underground 
in Scotland. 

1900
Birth of Elizabeth Lyon (Queen Elizabeth 'The Queen Mother'). Although she was born in London, she was brought up at Glamis Castle, Angus.

1915 
Britain's worst train disaster near Gretna Green, south of Dumfries, killing 227 people. 

1923
Elizabeth Lyon (Queen Elizabeth 'The Queen Mother') marries the Duke of York.

1926
John Logie Baird (1888-1946) invents the television.

1928
Sir Alexander Fleming (1881-1955) discovers penicillin.

1930
St. Kilda evacuated. Authorities decided that life was intolerable on the island.

1934
Cunard White Star liner "Queen Mary" was launched at Clydebank.

1935
Sir Robert Watson-Watt invents radar.

1936
Edward VIII abdicates to marry Mrs. Simpson. The Duke of York (his brother) becomes King George VI.

1937 
The largest ocean liner, the Queen Elizabeth, launched at Clydebank. 

1941 
Hitler's Deputy Rudolf Hess parachutes from a plane just south of Glasgow. His purpose remains one of the great enigmas of the war. 

1943 
More than 1000 people killed over two days in Clydebank and Glasgow during the only sustained German Luftwaffe attack on Scotland during the Second World War. 

1950 
Scottish Nationalists steal the "Stone of Destiny" from Westminster Abbey. This was Scotland's Coronation Stone, taken by the English in 1296. By tradition all British Monarchs have to be crowned while sitting on it. It was eventually recovered from Arbroath Abbey, although some claim this was a copy, and the original remained in Scotland. 

1959 
Scotland's first nuclear power station opened at Chapelcross in Dumfriesshire. 

1964 
Forth Road Bridge opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. It was the longest suspension bridge in Europe at the time. 

1965 
Tay Road Bridge opened - for a short time the longest bridge in the world, at just over one-mile. 

1967 
Queen Elizabeth II (QE2) was launched in Clydebank. It was the last of the great Clyde-built passenger liners. 

1971 
Sixty-six people killed in Scotland's worst football disaster, when part of the stadium collapsed at Ranger's ground in Glasgow after a match with Celtic. 

1975 
The first oil piped ashore from the North Sea at Peterhead

1988 
Scotland's worst terrorist incident occurs when a bomb explodes on board a Boeing 747 airliner on course from Frankfurt to New York. It crashes on the village of Lockerbie in Dumfrieshire, killing a total of 275 people, - all those on board and a number on the ground.

Piper Alpha oil oil production platform in the North Sea explodes, killing 187 men.

1990 
Scotland defeats England to win the Rugby "Grand Slam" 

1996 
A gunman kills 16 five-year-old children, their teacher and himself in a Dunblane Primary School in Perthshire. This is the worst tragedy of its type in the U.K.  

The "Stone of Destiny", Scotland's Coronation Stone, is returned from London to Edinburgh Castle (rather than it's native Scone) on 30 November 1996 - 700 years after being stolen by Edward I. The drab ceremony, the fact that it was more of a loan than an actual return and the ongoing pressure for greater Scottish autonomy led many to see this as an empty gesture.

1997
Scotland votes for devolution and having it's own Parliament, with tax raising powers. 

1999
The Scottish Parliament reconvened on 12 May 1999, 292 years after its "adjournment" in 1707.

2003
Andrew Durie of Durie becomes Chief and Representer of the Durie family